Board of Trustees Rules for Maintenance of Order on Campus Policy

Application of Rule

The rules shall apply to all State-operated institutions of the State University. These rules may be supplemented by additional rules for the maintenance of public order heretofore or hereafter adopted for any individual institution, approved and adopted by the State University Trustees and filed with the Commission of Education and Board of Regents, but only to the extent that such additional rules are not inconsistent herewith. The rules hereby adopted shall govern the conduct of student, faculty and other staff, licensees, invitees and all other persons, whether or not their presence is authorized, upon the campus of any institution to which such rules are applicable and also upon or with respect to any other premises or property, under the control of such institution, used in its teaching, research, administrative, service, cultural, recreational, athletic and other programs and activities, provided, however, that charges against any student for violation of these rules upon the premises of any such institution other than the one at which he is in attendance shall be heard and determined at the institution in which he is enrolled as a student.

Prohibited Conduct

No person, either singly or in concert with others shall:

    a. Willfully cause physical injury to any other person, nor threaten to do so for the purpose of compelling or inducing such other person to refrain from any act which he has a lawful right to do or to do any act which he has a lawful right not to do.

    b. Physically restrain or detain any other person, nor remove such person from any place where he is authorized to remain.

    c. Willfully damage or destroy property of the institution or under its jurisdiction, nor remove or use such property without authorization.

    d. Without permission, expressed or implied, enter into any private office of an administrative officer, member of the faculty or staff member.

    e. Enter upon and remain in any building or facility for any purpose other than its authorized uses in such manner as to obstruct its authorized uses or in such manner as to obstruct its authorized use by others.

    f. Without authorization, remain in any building or facility after it is normally closed.

    g. Refuse to leave any building or facility after being required to do so by any authorized administrative officer. h. Obstruct the free movement of persons and vehicles in any place to which these rules apply.

    i. Deliberately disrupt or prevent the peaceful and orderly conduct of classes, lectures and meetings or deliberately interfere with the freedom of any person to express his views, including invited speakers.

    j. Knowingly have in his possession upon any premises to which these rules apply, any rifle, shotgun, pistol, revolver or other firearm or weapon without the written authorization of the chief administrative officer whether or not a license to possess the same has been issued to such person.

    k. Willfully incite others to commit any of the acts herein prohibited with specific intent to procure them to do so.

Freedom of Speech and Assembly, Picketing and Demonstrations

    a. No student, faculty or other staff member or authorized visitor shall be subject to any limitation or penalty solely for the expression of his views nor for having assembled with others for such purpose. Peaceful picketing and other orderly demonstrations in public areas of ground and building will not be interfered with. Those involved in picketing and demonstrations may not, however, engage in specific conduct in violation of the provisions of the preceding section.

    b. In order to afford maximum protection to the participants and to the institutional community, each State-operated institution of the State University shall promptly adopt and promulgate, and thereafter continue in effect as revised from time to time, procedures appropriate to such institution for the giving of reasonable advance notice to such institution of any planned assembly, picketing or demonstration upon the grounds of such institution, its purposed locale and intended purpose, provided, however, that the giving of such notice shall not be made a condition precedent to any such assembly, picketing or demonstration and provided, further that this provision shall not supersede nor preclude procedures in effect at such institution for obtaining permission to use the facilities thereof.

Penalties

A person who shall violate any of the provisions of these rules (or of the rules of any individual institution supplementing or implementing these rules) shall:

    a. If he is a licensee or invitee, have his authorization to remain upon the campus or other property withdrawn and shall be directed to leave the premises. In the event of his failure or refusal to do so, he shall be subject to ejection.

    b. If he is a trespasser or visitor without specific license or invitation, be subject to ejection.

    c. If he is a student, be subject to expulsion or such lesser disciplinary action as the facts of the case may warrant, including suspension, probation, loss of privileges, reprimand or warning.

    d. If he is a faculty member having a term or continuing appointment be guilty of misconduct and be subject to dismissal or termination of his employment or such less disciplinary actions the facts may warrant including suspension without pay or censure.

    e. If he is a staff member in the Classified Service of the Civil Service, described in Section 75 of the Civil Service Law, be guilty of misconduct and be subject to the penalties prescribed in said section.

    f. If he is a staff member other than one described in subdivision (d) and (e), be subject to dismissal, suspension without pay or censure.

Enforcement Program

    a. The chief administrative officer shall be responsible for the enforcement of these rules (or of the rules of any individual institution supplementing or implementing these rules) and he shall designate the other administrative officers who are authorized to take action in accordance with such rules when required or appropriate to carry them into effect.

    b. It is not intended by any provision herein to curtail the right of students, faculty or staff to be heard upon any matter affecting them in their relations with the institution. In the case of any apparent violation of these rules (or of the rules of any individual institution supplementing or implementing these rules) by such persons, which, in the judgment of the chief administrative officer or his designee, does not pose any immediate threat of injury to person or property, such officer may make reasonable effort to learn the cause of the conduct in question and to persuade those engaged herein to desist and to resort to permissible methods for the resolution of any issues which may be presented. In doing so, such officer shall warn such persons of the consequences of persistence in the prohibited conduct, including their ejection from any premises of the institution where their continued presence and conduct is in violation of these rules (or of the rules of any individual institution supplementing or implementing these rule).

    c. In any case where violation of these rules (or of the rules of any individual institution supplementing or implementing these rules) does not cease after such warning and in other cases of willful violation of such rules, the chief administrative officer or his designee shall cause the ejection of the violator from any premises which he occupies in such violation and shall initiate disciplinary action as herein before provided.

    d. The chief administrative officer or his designee may apply to the public authorities for any aid which he deems necessary in causing the ejection of any violator of these rules (or of the rules of any individual institution supplementing or implementing these rules) and he may request the State University counsel to apply to any court of appropriate jurisdiction for an injunction to restrain the violation or threatened violation of such rules.

Amendment

Said Part is hereby amended by adding a new section, to be Section 535.9, reading as follows:

    a. The term "chief administrative officer" as used in these rules shall be deemed to mean and include any person authorized to exercise the powers of that office during a vacancy therein or during the absence or disability of the incumbent.

    b. Whenever a complaint is made to the chief administrative officer of any State-operated institution of the University of a violation by a student of the rules prescribed in this Part (or any rules adopted by an individual institution supplementing or implementing such rules) or whenever he has knowledge that such a violation may have occurred, he shall cause an investigation to be made and the statements of the complainants, if any, and of other persons having knowledge of the facts reduced to writing. If he is satisfied from such investigation and statement that there is reasonable ground to believe that there has been such a violation he shall prepare or cause to be prepared charges against the student or students alleged to have committed such violation which shall state the provision prescribing the offense and shall specify the ultimate facts alleged to constitute such offense.

    c. Such charges shall be in writing and shall be served on the student or students named therein by delivering the same to him or them personally, if possible, or, if not, by mailing a copy of such charges by registered mail to such student or students at his or their usual place or places of abode while attending college and also to his or their home address or addresses, if different.

    d. The notice of charges so served shall fix a date for hearing thereon not less than ten nor more than fifteen days from the date of service which shall be the date of mailing where necessary to effect service by mail. Failure to appear in response to the charges on the date fixed for hearing, unless there has been a continuance for good cause shown, shall be deemed to be an admission of the facts stated in such charges and shall warrant such action as may then be appropriate thereon. Before taking such action, the hearing committee, hereinafter referred to, shall give notice to any student who has failed to appear, in the manner prescribed in paragraph (c) of its proposed findings and recommendations to be submitted to the chief administrative officer and shall so submit such findings and recommendations ten days thereafter unless the student has meanwhile shown good cause for his failure to appear, in which case a date for hearing shall be fixed.

    e. Upon demand at any time before or at the hearing the student charged or his representative, duly designated, shall be furnished a copy of the statements taken by the chief administrative officer in relation to such charges and with the names of any other witnesses who will be produced at the hearing in support of the charges, provided, however, that this shall not preclude the testimony of witnesses who were unknown at the time of such demand.

    f. The chief administrative officer may, upon the service of charges, suspend the student named therein, pending the hearing and determination thereof, whenever, in his judgment, the continued presence of such student would constitute a clear danger to himself or to the safety of persons or property on the premises of the institution or would pose an immediate threat of disruptive interference with the normal conduct of the institution's activities and functions, provided, however, that the chief administrative officer shall grant an immediate hearing on request of any student so suspended with respect to the basis for such suspension.

    g. There shall be constituted at each State-operated institution a hearing committee to hear charges against students of violation of the rules for maintenance of public order prescribed   by or referred to in this Part. Such committee shall consist of three members of the administrative staff and three members of the faculty, designated by the chief administrative officer, and three students who shall be designated by the members names by the chief administrative officer. Each such member shall serve until his successor or replacement has been designated. No member of the committee shall serve in any case where he is a witness or is or has been directly involved in the events upon which the charges are based. In order to provide for cases where there may be such a disqualification and for cases of absence or disability, the chief administrative officer shall designate an alternate member of the administrative staff and an alternate member of the faculty and his principal designees shall designate an alternate student member to serve in such cases. Any five members of the committee may conduct hearings and make findings and recommendations as hereinafter provided.

    h. The hearing committee shall not be bound by the technical rules of evidence but may hear or receive any testimony or evidence which is relevant and material to the issues presented by the charges and which will contribute to a full and fair consideration thereof and determination thereon. A student against whom the charges are made may appear by and with representatives of his choice. He may confront and examine witnesses against him and may produce witnesses and documentary evidence in his own behalf. There may be present at the hearings: the student charged and his representatives and witnesses; other witnesses; representatives of the institutional administration; and, unless the student shall request a closed hearing, such other members of the institutional community or other persons, or both, as may be admitted to the hearing committee. A transcript of the proceedings shall be made.

    i. Within twenty days after the close of a hearing, the hearing committee shall submit a report of its findings of fact and recommendations for disposition of the charges to the chief administrative officer, together with a transcript of the proceedings, and shall at the same time transmit a copy of its report to the student concerned or his representative. Within ten days thereafter the chief administrative officer shall make his determination thereon. Final authority to dismiss the charges or to determine the guilt of those against whom they are made and to expel, suspend or otherwise discipline them shall be vested in the chief administrative officer. If he shall reject the findings of the hearing committee in whole or in part, he shall make new findings which must be based on substantial evidence in the record and shall include them in the notice of his final determination which shall be served upon the student or students with respect to whom it is made.

Further resolved that amendments and additions made by this resolution shall take effect immediately, and that Section 535.9 as added to Part 535 by this resolution shall apply to charges for violation of the rules prescribed by or referred to in this Part heretofore served which have been finally determined within sixty days after the adoption hereof, which charges shall be referred to the committee constituted pursuant to said Section 535.9 for determination in accordance therewith, and said section shall apply to all charges for violation of such rules hereafter made, whether for violations heretofore or hereafter committed, and

Further resolved that the amendments or additions made by this resolution shall be forthwith filed with the Commissioner of Education and the Board of Regents in compliance with Section 6450 of the Education Law.